Turning to God from Idols (1 Thessalonians): When the Thessalonians became Christians, Paul says everyone heard how they turned to the true and living God from idols. But idolatry wasn’t only an issue back then. Human beings continue to put things (even good things!) in the place of God. We must choose for ourselves this day whom we will serve. Recorded on May 4, 2025, on 1 Thessalonians 1:1-5b-10 by Pastor David Parks.
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This sermon is part of our series on 1 Thessalonians called Faithful to the End. Being a Christian in the Greek, first-century city of Thessalonica was tough. Thessalonica was a big and prosperous city, but it was full of idols. The Apostle Paul and the first Christians there faced fierce religious persecution and tremendous political pressure to conform. But despite their suffering, they remained faithful. Our culture is different today, but following Jesus can still be very costly. Will we be faithful to the end?
Sermon Transcript
Well, today, we’re continuing a 10-part sermon series we started last week called Faithful to the End from 1 Thessalonians in the Bible. If you missed the series introduction last week, you can always go back and watch or listen to the podcast online. But, we said that 1 Thessalonians is the earliest letter from the Apostle Paul that we have in the NT of the Bible, written not even 20 years after the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Paul was writing from Athens back to his friends in Thessalonica in the church he helped plant. Being a Christian in the Greek, first-century city of Thessalonica was tough. Thessalonica was a big and prosperous city, but it was full of idols; there was fierce religious persecution, and tremendous political pressure to conform. But thankfully, despite their difficulty, these early Christian brothers and sisters remained faithful. Paul heard this from his apprentice, Timothy, and was overjoyed. This is one of the reasons his letter is so encouraging. Paul wanted to continue to water the seeds he planted so that they would grow and flourish, bearing much fruit of the gospel. Today, we’re going to see that part of the story of the Thessalonians’ faith is that they not only believed in Jesus, but they turned away from idols (false gods) and turned to serve the one true and living God. This is our first major lesson in how to stay faithful to the end. Human beings were made to worship. We don’t become worshipers when we become Christians, or even when we get serious about our faith. All sorts of things can become the treasure of our hearts. And all sorts of things can master us in life. But if we fail to understand our heart of worship and the need for this turning, our faith will be very fragile. When trouble or persecution comes, will we remain faithful, or will we quickly fall away? If you have your Bible/app, please open it to 1Th 1:5. This passage is fairly brief, so I’ll read through the whole thing, and then we’ll go back and work our way through it.
1 Thessalonians 1:5b–10 (NIV), “You know how we lived among you for your sake. 6 You became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you welcomed the message in the midst of severe suffering with the joy given by the Holy Spirit. 7 And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia. 8 The Lord’s message rang out from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia—your faith in God has become known everywhere. Therefore we do not need to say anything about it, 9 for they themselves report what kind of reception you gave us. They tell how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, 10 and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath.” This is God’s word. Last week, we worked through Acts 17, which is the story of how the gospel came to Thessalonica. And how the Apostle Paul and his coworkers, Silas and Timothy, arrived, traveling down the famous Via Egnatia, had success in helping a number of people (Jews and Gentiles) come to faith in Jesus, and the church was born. But they also ran into severe opposition; a mob was formed, their host, Jason, and some others were arrested, and Paul ended up making a run for it. Paul starts this section with a reminder of their brief but meaningful time together.
1 Thessalonians 1:5b (NIV), “You know how we lived among you for your sake.” Paul’s going to come back to this theme in the passage we’ll look at next week in chapter 2, but for now, we’ll just say that as a good pastor, Paul knew that the Thessalonians needed more than just words. They needed more than an expertly preached sermon or Bible study, as important as those things are. They needed to see an example of a real person following Jesus. They needed to see what a gospel-shaped life looked like as much as they needed to hear the gospel. Paul points back to this example, but he goes on to celebrate how they responded to it.
1 Thessalonians 1:6 (NIV), “6 You became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you welcomed the message in the midst of severe suffering with the joy given by the Holy Spirit.” This is a remarkable statement. Not only did they look to Paul’s example, but they also became imitators of him and of the Lord Jesus. But in what way? How were they like Paul? How were they like Jesus? Paul says that it was in the way they responded to severe suffering. They welcomed the gospel in the midst of severe suffering. The gospel was good news for them, despite the fact that their lives became harder, not easier. In fact, they responded to this hardship with joy given by the Holy Spirit. Isn’t that incredible? Joy! How often do we think that if only our lives could become easier, then we would be happier? But Paul says their lives got much more difficult, but they had real joy. This joy was evidence that the Holy Spirit was at work within those believers, because how else would you account for it? In his letter to the Philippians, Paul says there’s a peace that passes all understanding (Php 4:7), but here, it seems that there is a joy that passes all understanding as well. Love, joy, peace…joy is part of the fruit the Spirit produces in your life. The church in Thessalonica wasn’t only faithful; they were joyful. But what effect would this spiritual joy have?
1 Thessalonians 1:7 (NIV), “7 And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia.” This is exactly how the gospel would continue to spread around the Roman Empire for the first few hundred years after Jesus’ death and resurrection (not that it works any differently today). Paul learned how to follow Jesus from others. And then he taught/modeled it for the Thessalonians, and then they taught/modeled it for others. If we look at a map, we’re reminded that Thessalonica was the capital city of the proud Roman province of Macedonia. This would’ve included the city of Berea, where Paul and his coworkers went after fleeing Thessalonica. The southern peninsula was the region known as Achaia, which included the cities of Athens and Corinth. And Paul says these suffering, yet joyful Thessalonians influenced all the other Christians throughout these regions.
1 Thessalonians 1:8-9a (NIV), “8 The Lord’s message rang out from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia—your faith in God has become known everywhere. Therefore we do not need to say anything about it, 9 for they themselves report what kind of reception you gave us.” Paul goes beyond their region of Macedonia and the region next door of Achaia and says that the Thessalonians are famous. Their faith in God has become known everywhere. What an encouraging thing to hear! Everyone has heard how they received this apostolic team, how they responded to the gospel, and how they remained faithful despite great religious, political, and (no doubt) social pressure to the contrary. One of the things that helps people stay faithful in the face of trials and tribulations is encouragement. Encouragement is like a drenching rain after a drought. It brings life. It sustains life. Paul isn’t trying to flatter these people; he’s trying to help them remain faithful. He’s pointing out the fruit he sees as proof of their faith. Do you know the power of encouragement in your life? When was the last time you pointed out someone’s strengths or the good spiritual fruit you’ve seen? Your friends need this kind of encouragement. Your spouse and kids need it. Your coworkers or classmates need it too. Not to get something from them, but to give something to them. To give them life. But for Paul, this fruit of faith naturally (actually supernaturally) flows out of the gospel.
1 Thessalonians 1:9b-10 (NIV), “9 They tell how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, 10 and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath.” The Thessalonians weren’t just extra positive, joyful, or faithful people. They were actually following Jesus. But they didn’t add Jesus to a pantheon of other gods. They turned to Jesus from the other gods, and there were many gods in their day. The Roman Empire was full of gods and goddesses who were thought to govern every aspect of life and death. The basic arrangement was that if you offered the right sacrifices and offerings to them, if you worshipped and served them, they would ensure you would provide identity, security/peace, health/wealth, and hope for the future. Basically, honor them and you’d have a good life. But according to the God of the Bible, these other gods were no gods at all. They were man-made; they were made-up idols without the power to say anything or do anything real. But what happens when you give your life to something that isn’t real? It’s not good. It’s not peace or joy that passes understanding. It’s not a path that leads to life. You need to turn and find a new path. This is the basic gospel message. There is a way that leads to life. It’s a way that is made possible through the person and work of Jesus Christ, the Son of God sent from heaven. He lived the perfect life. He died on the cross to atone for the sins of the world. But on the third day he was raised from the dead. And anyone that calls on the name of Jesus, anyone who believes in him and in his death and resurrection, will be saved. Saved from what? From the wrath of God against all the wicked evil, the abuse, the injustice, the oppression of this broken world. One day Christ will return, the dead will be raised, and all will give an account of their lives to him. Those who trust him as Lord and Savior will live forever with him in the new heaven and earth. Those who reject him will be forever separated from the only source of life, light, and love. This is what hell is. So the way of Jesus is the way that leads to life here and now, but also and much more importantly, on into eternity. Jesus isn’t just one option among many. He’s the only way and the only truth and the only life. This is why the Thessalonians had to turn from idols and turn to Jesus. But this wasn’t easy then, and it’s certainly not any easier today. It’s not easy for multiple reasons. We’ll talk more about the external pressure of persecution in two weeks, which was really tough for the Thessalonians. But for the remainder of our time, we’ll consider the internal pressure of idolatry, which can still be difficult for us to overcome. You see, from the beginning, human beings were made to worship and serve God in all of life. We don’t become worshipers when we become Christians. But here’s the problem: All sorts of things can become the treasure of our hearts. All sorts of things can master us in life, including God-substitutes. About five hundred years ago, the Protestant Reformer, John Calvin, famously wrote, “the human mind is, so to speak, a perpetual forge of idols.” (Calvin, John. The Institutes of the Christian Religion (p. 51). (Function). Kindle Edition.) This is explained in the Scriptures by the fact that from creation, human beings were made in the image and likeness of God. We were made to reflect the glory of God back to God in worship and out into the world as his beloved children. Of course, since the fall to sin, sometimes this image is grossly distorted. Sometimes people hate God or do great evil, reflecting the opposite of the glory of God into the world and bringing the kingdom of hell instead of the kingdom of heaven. But even when people consciously reject the one true and living God, they cannot undo how they were made. People cannot stop worshiping because we were made to worship. When people reject the one true and living God, they do not stop worshipping; they simply choose someone or something (or, perhaps, several things) to worship in the place of God. A modern person might think, “Well, sure, people used to invent things to worship and maybe still do sometimes, but that’s just old code left in our brains from the olden, more superstitious days when we didn’t have such advanced science and technology to understand ourselves and the world around us. When people finally realize this, then religion is done.” Now, this faith (do you see the irony?), not in some silly ancient god but in almighty science and technology, is what led philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche to declare, “God is dead!” (Nietzsche, Friedrich. Thus Spake Zarathustra [with Biographical Introduction] (p. 12). (Function). Kindle Edition.) But is God dead? Or did we just give up the old gods for new ones? That’s exactly what many secular people have done today. How many people hang on every word of our scientific prophets who preach a message of judgment, but offer a form of salvation, if only we would obey their infallible word. How many people sacrifice time/attention, money/data — their very lives — to our technological priests who serve as the mediators between people and the transcendent and omniscient being that lives in the heavens (cloud). And for what? What is the hope offered if you give your lives to worship and serve these idols? For the hope of a life of love, joy, and peace, so long as you subscribe to their platform? So long as you consume their ads? But have these modern prophets and priests ushered in a new golden age? Have they brought us utopia? Have they brought heaven down to earth? Have they made us happier and more fulfilled? Have they delivered on their promises, or have they just done what people have always done and put something (even good things like science and tech) in the place of God? And didn’t this abandonment of the Christian religion result in the deaths of hundreds of millions of people in the last century and the two World Wars? It’s no different when politics or wealth or family is your chosen religion. A president, a billionaire, or even your kids make terrible gods. But we’re so much more advanced than those superstitious people who lived so long ago, right? Not really. People are people. And people today have the same need to turn “to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven.” So today, whom do you serve? Do you get your identity from Jesus or from something else? Do you get your security/peace from Jesus? How about your hope for the future? Even good things like health/wealth or marriage/family can become idols if they take the place of God in your life. When Jesus proclaimed the gospel, he said the right response would be to repent and believe. Repent means to turn. To turn from your old way and your old gods. And believe. Turn to God in faith. Follow Jesus by faith. Long before the gospel arrived in Thessalonica, during the time of Joshua, the people of God faced the same temptation and the same choice. In Joshua 24, before his death, Joshua made sure to warn the people about this. He assembled all the people and said this, “Now fear the Lord and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. 15 But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.” (Joshua 24:14–15, NIV). Friends, you have two paths before you today. One path that leads to life. And one that leads away from life. Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve. But if you choose Jesus, he will sustain you no matter what. He will love you. He will walk with you. He will give you joy and peace that passes all understanding. His Spirit will sustain you, even in the midst of great hardship and difficulty. Praise God. Let us pray.
